Edition:
October 24, 2008
Public Notices - DBA Info • CONTACT
US: News Department • Display
Advertising • Classified
Advertising
|
||
Movie Reviewers
To take a jab at George W. Bush is like hitting a beach ball. Each and every day, opinions of “W.” are less favorable. So, for left-leaning director Oliver Stone (“Nixon,” “JFK”), known to not let the truth get in the way of a good story, we expected a thorough bush whacking. And for those assuming W is a simple buffoon, nothing is that simple.
Over the years, Stone has been rightly criticized for altering the facts of his semi-biographical portraits. Few people and organizations have the resources to indelibly alter historical facts in the media. This practice is less than acceptable, whether on film, print, radio or television. Unfortunately, objectivity is increasingly becoming a rare commodity.
Sometimes the real story is not nearly as flattering as we hope, but it still needs to be told. Today, our nation and the world face the greatest crises in generations. Nobody predicted that and nobody expected the first ever semi-biography of a sitting U.S. President. Needless to say, the few remaining W fans will not see him lionized here.
Yet, Stone portrays Dubya (Josh Brolin, “American Gangster”) in a fairly empathetic manner. He is a tragic character caught in the shadow of his famous grandfather, father and brighter brother Jeb. Dubya agonizes, “You don’t know what a burden it is to be born with a silver spoon in your mouth.” Well, we all have our crosses to bear.
As head cheerleader and legacy frat boy at Yale, Dubya is an unbridled cowboy operating mostly in an inebriated state. He experiences legal and ethical skirmishes, but Poppy Bush (James Cromwell, “RFK”) has an endless supply of “get out of jail free” cards for Junior. Upon graduation, Dubya bounces from job to job without much success or interest. So, as most people with few accomplishments, he runs for Congress.
After a stinging defeat and desperately in need of change, Dubya stops drinking for good and becomes a born again Christian. In all sincerity, he dedicates his life to making a difference. It will be a mistake to “misunderestimate” this man again. Starting at the bottom, this bush leaguer becomes owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team (say what?). Yes, Poppy is still pulling more strings than a drunken piano tuner.
Then, Dubya gets a calling from God (and Karl Rove) to be governor of Texas, proving God really does work in mysterious ways. Karl asks, “Voters want a leader they feel they can drink with, and you know who that is?” Of course it’s the original Joe Sixpack. So we ask, “Is this a great country or what?” The best part of campaigning is sometimes people respond to simple answers to complex problems. Thinking just screws things up.
As President, we’re in the room with all the President’s men, such as Donald Rumsfeld, Ari Fleischer, Paul Wolfowitz, General Tommy Franks and George Tenet. Richard Dreyfuss as Dick Cheney is especially remarkable and Thandie Newton as Condoleeza Rice is over the top. But Jeffrey Wright as Colin Powell sufficiently conveys his conflicted and out-numbered position by warning them about Iraq, “You break it, you bought it.”
Many malapropos are verbatim quotes from actual events. And, although some Bush foes challenge his intelligence, this portrayal more accurately defines him as a decider unduly influenced by gut feelings and a disinterest in details of the issues. Late in his term, W regrets the outcome, “My only dream was for freedom in the Middle-East and the world.”
“W.” is 113 minutes and rated PG-13 for language, sexual references, alcohol abuse, smoking and brief disturbing war images. This provocative story might seem harsh on Bush, yet even Republican candidates are distancing themselves far from his regime. As W once advised, “Fool me once, shame on me, fool me twice . . . can’t get fooled again.”
Stone describes a shallow man with deep commitment to what he believes is right and wrong for America. Brolin effectively depicts the character without creating a caricature. The late George Carlin believed we’d never really have a “buddy” President until we get one called “Booger.” W is probably as close as we’ll ever get, so mission accomplished!
Ron’s Rating: B+ Leigh’s Rating: B
|
|
